ubermonkey
ubermonkey t1_j6mwilj wrote
ubermonkey t1_j6lf467 wrote
Reply to comment by MeatPopsicle14 in This espresso machine is from 2004, i got it from Savers last year and it works like brand new. I know people online who have even older ones that still work perfectly. by Waryur
“N.b.” is Latin. It stands for “nota bene”, which means “note well” — basically “pay attention to this part!”
PID is an electronic controller that stabilizes the brewing temp of an espresso machine. The abbreviation stands for “proportional integral derivative” but it’s mostly just referred to with the initials.
This is a quickly Googled link that explains it. Nicer machines have them, but often older ones can have them added.
ubermonkey t1_j6joq6l wrote
Reply to comment by sunflowercompass in This espresso machine is from 2004, i got it from Savers last year and it works like brand new. I know people online who have even older ones that still work perfectly. by Waryur
I feel that.
I came to espresso from pour over, though, so for me getting a delicious American in, realistically, less than a minute is pretty great even if I have to measure-grind-tamp-pull during that minute.
ubermonkey t1_j6jbb0z wrote
Reply to comment by haunted-liver-1 in This espresso machine is from 2004, i got it from Savers last year and it works like brand new. I know people online who have even older ones that still work perfectly. by Waryur
I do not think what you are asking for exists, but there certainly ARE industry standards and well-understood machines that create a repair environment probably quite close to what you imagine.
A LOT of nicer machines, for example, are built around an E61 group head, so accessories and replacement parts are easy to find.
ubermonkey t1_j6jazjc wrote
ubermonkey t1_j6jayhi wrote
Reply to comment by sunflowercompass in This espresso machine is from 2004, i got it from Savers last year and it works like brand new. I know people online who have even older ones that still work perfectly. by Waryur
Superautos all eventually taste like ass IME.
Italy makes fine machines, but you probably have to spend more to get a solid one. I have a Rocket, which is absurd, and I wouldn't suggest it for most humans because of its size and absurdity, but it makes fantastic coffee and is objectively beautiful.
I've paired mine with a Baratza Vario+ grinder. I used a lower-end Baratza to start with (carried over from my pourover days), and it was ok but the change when I got a proper espresso grinder was pretty big.
ubermonkey t1_j6j1902 wrote
Reply to comment by LineChef in This espresso machine is from 2004, i got it from Savers last year and it works like brand new. I know people online who have even older ones that still work perfectly. by Waryur
I don't think the Silvio is plumbable. You'd just have to keep the water res full.
My understanding is that you need to be a few ticks up the ladder before being able to plumb your machine into your water main. My machine is plumbable but I haven't done it; it's no big deal to just fill the res.
ubermonkey t1_j6j0yli wrote
Reply to comment by haunted-liver-1 in This espresso machine is from 2004, i got it from Savers last year and it works like brand new. I know people online who have even older ones that still work perfectly. by Waryur
What does that even mean?
ubermonkey t1_j6j0vhi wrote
Reply to comment by sunflowercompass in This espresso machine is from 2004, i got it from Savers last year and it works like brand new. I know people online who have even older ones that still work perfectly. by Waryur
Were they ever really that cheap?
ubermonkey t1_j6i8ig0 wrote
Reply to This espresso machine is from 2004, i got it from Savers last year and it works like brand new. I know people online who have even older ones that still work perfectly. by Waryur
Good choice! The Rancilio has been a go-to first-proper-espresso-machine for a long, long time, and if you paid $35 for it you fucking STOLE it. Nice! (A new Rancilio Silvia is $865 at Seattle Coffee Gear as I type this, and even at that price it's considered an excellent and capable machine that punches well above its weight.)
Semiautomatic espresso machines -- which is to say, the ones where you twist a knob or pull a lever to trigger the flow of pressurized water into the portafilter, but which do NOT measure or grind beans or automatically fill the portafilter or any of that nonsense -- are usually pretty simple beasts. If you buy a good one (and this is one) there's no reason you can't use it for decades. They're very, very repairable, and are at their root not especially complicated devices.
My pal C., who is a finance guy not some sort of engineer, has repaired his machine a couple times in the ~12-15 years he's had it (once to get the pump to limp along a bit further; a second time to replace said pump).
(Oh, and if you get into coffee, nb. that the idea of a PID is going to raise its head. That Rancilio doesn't have one, but it's apparently VERY EASY to add one to it if you're at all handy.)
ubermonkey t1_jboxvp0 wrote
Reply to I got this pot from my ( now passed) aunt, she got it when she married in early 50's ! by duck-and-quack
High quality UNCOATED cookware is seriously OG BIFL stuff. Nothing nonstick is gonna be BIFL, but quality steel, copper, or cast iron -- including enameled cast iron -- is stuff you'll pass on.
Or, if you prefer the other angle, is absolutely stuff you can snag at estate sales or whatever.